Monday, 1 December 2014

Touted as the solution to Sydney's gridlock, the solution to Port Botany transportation of freight and ending the transportation of nightmare from Sydney's Kingsford-Smith airport the Westconnex project remains the "lemon" I said it was on 3 October 2012. Then it was a $10 million "lemon", now it is a $20 billion "lemon", and the NSW Liberals have no idea where the road is going.

There is no route, no modelling, no design and no costing. This road goes nowhere near Port Botany and the amount of containers being moved by rail has fallen in the last 3 years from 25% to 12% with container movements to increase by 294%. The NSW economy is going to grind to a halt as this poorly planned sea port will not be able to move imports and exports in and out of Australia.

The
NSW Opposition today has slammed the Baird Liberal Government for its inept
management of the WestConnex motorway project with the fifth major change to
the route the cost of the project has
doubled to $20 billion before a single sod has been turned in construction.

Shadow Roads Minister Michael Daley has pointed out today since
the original WestConnex concept released by Infrastructure NSW in 2012, the
motorway project has been redesigned by the Liberal Government a further four
times while the cost has skyrocketed to $20 billion.

So
far the Government has announced five WestConnex routes, including:

“The
Liberals made a promise before the last election to start construction on
either the M4 East or the M5 East before the next election – yet no major works
will have been commenced on either project and the start is still years away, Michael Daley said.

“The
Liberals magic pudding promises have also seen the total cost of the project
blow out to $20 billion according to today’s media reports.

“The
Liberals have been fiddling around with lines on maps for the past four years
instead of getting on with the job.

“How
can motorists in Sydney have any faith in the Liberals’ grandiose
infrastructure promises when they can’t control the cost of their flagship road
project or even start construction of it as they promised before the last
election?”

Mr
Daley said Mike Baird and the Liberals were promising well in excess of $20
billion worth of infrastructure if they privatize the electricity network – yet
these are just empty promises that are unfunded and cannot be believed.

“Mike
Baird is traveling around NSW with his privatization magic pudding promising
everything to everyone – the reality is that his projects are blowing out
before they have even left the drawing board and not even this magic pudding is
going to save his empty and unfunded promises.

“Mike
Baird and the Liberals are keeping the public in the dark on the cost blow outs
and route details of the WestConnex while selectively leaking animations and
pictures to the media.

“This
is not the way you plan and build major infrastructure in a global city like
Sydney.

“The
only thing the people of NSW will get out from the Liberals will be glossy
brochures and empty promises.”

About Ron Hoenig

Ron Hoenig MP is the State Member for Heffron in the NSW Parliament.
He was elected to Parliament at a by-election on the 25 August 2012.
Prior to entering Parliament he was the Mayor of the City of Botany Bay, a position he held for more than 30 years. He was, and still is regarded by many as one of the most progressive Mayors in the Sydney metropolitan region.
He is a barrister and prior to entering parliament was a Public Defender for the State of New South Wales.
Ron Hoenig was born in Sydney and raised in Eastlakes, attending Eastlakes Public School, Daceyville Public School and The J.J. Cahill Memorial High School in Mascot.